DU’s letter to St Stephen’s, sent barely two weeks before Elias was to take charge as the first woman principal in the 145-year history of the college, marked the latest flashpoint in the years-long confrontation between one of India’s most storied colleges and the university of which it is part. Over the last four years, the relationship between St Stephen’s and DU has steadily deteriorated over a range of issues: admissions through the Common University Entrance Test (CUET), interview weightage for Christian minority students, implementation of supernumerary quotas, seat allocation disputes, postgraduate admissions, and now the appointment of the principal. The disagreements, which essentially stem from the status of St Stephen’s as a Christian minority institution, have been litigated in the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court, where both sides have invoked constitutional principles, university statutes and questions of minority rights. What has triggered the latest confrontation?…